Love, Legacy and Salvation: The wills of Tunja, 1539-1579

This study explores the development of a new colonial society during the first two generations after the conquest of the Colombian highlands through a detailed analysis of the wills of Tunja. I argue that while early modern wills are formulaic, they encompass less regulated spaces in which we can see individual concerns and priorities coming to the fore. This is particularly the case for a number of peculiarly "colonial" circumstances and problems that had yet to be directly addressed or resolved by the religious and secular authorities of Europe. Unresolved issues included the legitimate ownership of conquest loot, encomendero rights and responsibilities with regards to repartimiento Indians, and the future of mestizo children. For indigenous house servants---the mothers of these mestizo children---the very act of writing a will testified to profound changes in the areas of religion, family, and property ownership. Finally, I place my research in the context of broader scholarship on marriage and illegitimacy in colonial Latin America.